Building a Web Application Server Configuration for Deployment on Another Machine

Overview of Building a Web Application Server Configuration for Deployment on Another Machine

Some sites separate the administration of SAS applications and the administration of Web application servers. For these situations, the SAS Deployment Wizard enables the SAS administrator to create a middle-tier configuration on a machine that does not contain a Web application server. After the configuration is complete, the SAS administrator compresses the Web tier configuration and hands it off to his Web administrator counterpart to deploy on the target Web application server machine.
With the middle-tier configuration the Web administrator has two options:
  • create the Web server configuration following local conventions and using the manual instructions (Instructions.html) that were generated during the SAS Web configuration
    For samples of the instructions that describe how to manually configure your Web application server for SAS Web applications, go to the Third-Party Software Web site at http://support.sas.com/resources/thirdpartysupport/v93/appservers/index.html and select the product name of your Web application server.
  • install the SAS configuration scripting tools on the Web application server machine and then use the tools to perform the server configuration exactly as is done during a SAS automated Web tier configuration
    For more information, see SAS Configuration Scripting Tools in SAS Intelligence Platform: Middle-Tier Administration Guide.
If you choose to configure a middle tier for deployment on another machine, some additional deployment wizard prompts appear. These prompts include the JDK vendor type and paths to the JDK and Web application server installations on the target machine. If you know the host name and ports of the Web application server when you run the deployment wizard, you can minimize the amount of manual property editing later when the configuration scripting tools are moved to the target machine. You will also have to change some SAS metadata if host and port information changes. It is important to note that the target machine must be the same operating system and CPU type as the machine where the SAS middle tier is initially configured.
Topics in this section include:

Preparation for Configuring a Middle Tier

To build a SAS middle-tier configuration for deployment on another machine, you need the following information:
  • JDK installation directory path
  • JDK version
  • Web application server installation directory (for example: JBOSS_HOME, WL_HOME).
  • Web application server version
  • Fully qualified host name that contains the Web application server
  • Ports on the Web application server machine to be assigned to the SAS managed servers. For deployments that use WebLogic Server, you need to know the node manager and administration server ports as well. For deployments that use WebSphere Application Server, you need to know the ports for the node agent and the deployment manager.
  • For deployments that use WebLogic Server, you also need to know the following items:
    • Oracle MW_HOME directory
    • Directory path for the domain that you are creating
      Note: We recommend that you accept the default WebLogic domain pathname during SAS installation, and then use that same structure for the SASDomain on the Web application server machine. The default pathname that the SAS Deployment Wizard prompts you for is configuration-directory/Levn/Web/SASDomain.

Build a Middle-Tier Configuration for Deployment on Another Machine

To build a SAS middle-tier configuration for deployment on another machine, follow these steps:
  1. Make sure that you have access to the information identified in Preparation for Configuring a Middle Tier.
  2. Start the SAS Deployment Wizard, using the command appropriate for your machine’s operating system that is documented here: Start Up Commands for the SAS Deployment Wizard.
  3. Follow the instructions for running the deployment wizard documented in Install and Configure SAS Interactively.
  4. When the Review Required Software page appears, be sure to select The Web Application Server and the Java Development Kit will be installed on another machine
    Review Required Software page
  5. When prompted for the location to the required software, remember to enter the path on the target Web application server machine.
  6. On the Select Configuration Prompting Level page, choose Custom.
    Select Configuration Prompting Level page
  7. Consider the following as you provide information about the various deployment wizard pages:
    If you are configuring multiple SAS tiers, you can reduce the number of prompts that you will need to edit later by changing the host names on the Local Machine Name panel to the machine where the application server resides. If you do this, all the products with host name prompts will display this machine as the default. There are several products, including SAS Remote Services Application and SAS Deployment Tester, that you will configure on the local machine, so you will have to change these back when you get to those wizard pages. If you are doing a single tier configuration, it is probably best to change the host name for each Web application that prompts for one, because there are many more SAS products on the foundation tier that require a host name. Be sure to enter all of the values collected in Preparation for Configuring a Middle Tier.
  8. When the deployment wizard is finished, you have to collect the entire configuration in order to move it to the Web application server machine. Be sure to bundle the following directories:
    • Scripting, SAS EAR, and Log configuration directory: SAS-configuration-directory/Levn/Web
    • SAS Web application configuration: SAS-configuration-directory/Levn/AppData
    Note: Remember that when you apply maintenance or add software updates, you must move the Web directories back to the original machine, apply your SAS maintenance and updates, and then finally move the updated Web directories back to the target Web application server machine.
  9. Hand off the compressed SAS middle-tier configuration to the Web administrator and refer him to the following topic for more information: SAS Configuration Scripting Tools in SAS Intelligence Platform: Middle-Tier Administration Guide.
    Note: Remember the fully qualified path of the directories that you package, because these directories must be located in the exact same path on the Web application server machine.
  10. After the Web application server has been configured on the target machine, you must follow the post-configuration steps documented in the Instructions.html file. One of these steps requires you to run a script on the machine where the SAS deployment Wizard was run. This script requires you to set the JDK_HOME environment variable in the following script: SAS-configuration-directory/Lev1/level_env.sh (level_env.bat on Windows). For more information, see SAS Configuration Scripting Tools in SAS Intelligence Platform: Middle-Tier Administration Guide.
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